Rebecca is a Social Media Account Manager at News Xtend, with a Masters of Journalism. She enjoys learning more about SMBs and trying to keep up with the latest news in Digital Marketing. When she's not writing and reading, you'll find her cuddling her cats, or looking for the closest sweet treat.

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Saving DOMUTS from the Doghouse

Reading time: 4 minutes

You could say that owning your own business is the new Australian dream. Imagine building a business you’re passionate about and watching it prosper, all while working to suit your schedule. No boss, no business attire, no corporate ladder to climb.

Yet every year, almost half a million ABNs are cancelled, and with them, half a million dreams and lost ambitions. The reality of owning a business is often hard work, with unexpected challenges, and no closing time.

DOMUTS was very nearly another cancelled dream. The business was created by Thea Mendes and her son Marcus after Marcus found out that dogs couldn’t enjoy donuts made for humans. The pair decided to create donuts made especially for dogs and sold them at local markets to appreciative customers.

DOMUTS took off like a Border Collie at an off-leash park. Soon, they’d received an order for 1500 donuts for the 2017 Smooth FM Festival of Chocolate, but there was a snag; the treats only had a short shelf life, and production was limited to 30 per batch in Thea’s home kitchen.

Thea had to begin making and freezing the treats months in advance, all while attending weekly markets and working full time. A broken oven was the final straw, and after the Festival Thea and Marcus decided to call it quits.

Thea had faith in her business idea and the ambition to try again, but she wasn’t sure where to start. She explains, “Ambition has helped me not settle. While I’ve had a stable career, I’ve always had a yearning for more.”

When CGU Insurance discovered just how many ABNs were being cancelled each year, they decided to do something to back small business and insure ambition. They made a call out to Australian businesses who needed expert advice to rescue their ABN – it was just the chance DOMUTS needed.

Thea submitted an application and was selected to have her ABN rescued by CGU Insurance.

With her ambition, backing and expert advice from CGU Insurance, Thea has taken DOMUTS from pound puppy to pedigree pooch.

An excited DOMUTS customer chooses a treat.

Trying DOMUTS a second time around called for a different approach. Thea admits that the first time, she leapt in with enthusiasm, but not much planning. This time, she worked on a business plan before she started baking.

“The support and advice I have received from CGU to rescue DOMUTS has been invaluable. In particular, providing me with Business Mentor, David Stefanoff. He has helped me formulate a clear business plan with key milestones and advice on when to scale the business further.”

It was also important to properly price the treats. The first time around, DOMUTS wasn’t making a profit – the price of ingredients was outstripping their sale price. David and Thea found a more cost-effective way to create the treats, and then priced them after taking margins into account.

CGU Insurance organised small business insurance to help protect Thea’s ambitions for DOMUTS. Now the business is covered with personal liability and cyber insurance.

While DOMUTS were a hit at Thea’s local market, there wasn’t an easy way to get the word out to the masses. A key part of restarting the business was working on a slick new marketing strategy.

With CGU Insurance’s assistance, Thea has had her website, logo and brand identity updated for a cohesive and memorable look. She says that it’s also been a lot of fun!

“Together we brainstormed names for the different DOMUTS flavours based on things we know dogs love to eat. Marcus then chose the final names – ‘Crunchy Stick’, ‘Chewy Tennis Ball’ and ‘Tasty Homework.”

Perhaps the most exciting marketing development was a television commercial spot during the AFL Grand Final, to put DOMUTS on the map for the millions of people watching the game.

Remember Thea working in her home kitchen, baking batches of 30 donuts to meet huge demand? Now she doesn’t need to.

CGU Insurance helped secure a commercial kitchen for DOMUTS. “It means I am no longer baking in my home kitchen and can now make 1000 donuts at a time,” Thea says.

Now that DOMUTS is well and truly out of the doghouse, Thea’s ambition shows no sign of waning. She still has big ambitions for her small business. “I’d love to expand the product range into other dog treats and also partner with retailers to get the product out via other distribution channels…maybe even mobile dog vans like Mr Whippy Ice Cream vans but filled with treats for dogs,” she laughs.

When your business succeeds, there’s no denying that it brings rewards beyond the financial. Aside from flexible hours and being able to work at something you’re passionate about, it can strengthen families and teach lifelong lessons.

“It’s also helped me teach Marcus about business and the perseverance needed to keep going despite hurdles and challenges along the way…I’ve definitely become more confident in myself and it’s helped Marcus and I grow closer…It’s risky and scary but with the right business and the right amount of ambition, anything is possible!”

CGU Insurance is offering three Australian businesses the chance to grow their ambitions, with a grant to the value of $40,000. Thinking of applying? Thea’s advice on writing an application is simple;

“Write from the heart…Don’t be afraid, give it a go and take a chance and see if this could be the opportunity you need to help your business grow!”